Hot Dish: Meet Tartine & Tartelette, Naples’ New French Boîte

By Dorothea Hunter Sönne

Naples Francophiles, say bienvenue to a new French restaurant, Tartine & Tartelette.

On Monday, Oct. 12, chef Jean Bechu and his wife, Axelle Bechu, who relocated here this summer from France, will welcome guests for lunch and dinner at their cozy space on Immokalee Road near Sweet Caroline’s.

It will be open every day except Sunday, and the menu at first blush promises the classics we all crave. At lunch: quiches, a niçoise, midday omelettes, cheesy onion soup and an even cheesier croque-monsieur, plus the three open-faced tartines (including one with foie gras and smoked duck breast) and a list of other sandwiches. When doors reopen for dinner, the lighter fare gives way to heartier escargots, coq au vin and a chicken cassolette with a mushroom cream sauce from their native Normandy. As for the tartelette part, expect some impressive handiwork in the dessert department—caramel shortbread, apple tart and île flottante (but, as of now, they do not envision having grab-and-go items like croissants).

The couple had owned a restaurant in Normandy for six years before deciding to make their perennial vacation spot on this side of the Atlantic their permanent home, and Jean has spent his entire professional life behind the stove. They’ve remade the space, which had been the home of the beloved Newsstand Café for many years, replacing the red and black in the dining room with calming grays and whites—and, judging on Axelle’s desire for it to be “warm and inviting,” we’re sure the crowds will follow suit.